What have you done today in the Garden?

Toni, it sure sounds as if you could use a helping hand and here am I at the northern end of our country !

 

Yesterday I transplanted strawberries and I emptied the compost bin into a trench and covered it up. I spent 5 hrs in the afternoon making firewood. Today more of the same, cutting wood.

 

Went to the lottie to check the mouse and rat traps and harvest some sprouts. There were quite a few sprouts that were ready--this cold and rainy weather seems to be just what the sprouts want and like because the diameter of the sprouts is increasing and they are solid....as opposed to loose and leafy. That looseness one gets when the weather is dryer and warmer, I have observed.

 

This morning, I watered loads and weeded and spread compost and mulch. I covered a row of carrots and filled my last raised bed with compost and topsoil. I made a mini tunnel over it. I will plant rucola inside. Off to cut wood again.

 

Today I buried peelings in the good earth.

 

My compost bin with the cover is FULL to overflowing. It is the one I use for kitchen vegie peelings. I guess we have been fixing a lot of vegetables! Usually it is able to keep up with our output. I am now having to trek up to the bin by our pool every nite with the new peelings...they need to go in a bin with a lid because we have 3 resident bears in town.

Of course our adult daughter wisely points out that a plastic bin with a lid is never going to deter a determined bear....but I still march up nightly with the compost offerings hoping I don't fall into the frigid pool.

 

Thus far, we have no bears in our area.
Raccoons, but we trap and relocate them to uninhabited land.

 

Not the garden but we took about 12 cubic yards of just pine needles and pine cones off our driveway. We took them from our town recycle center... We will have more in a couple of weeks LOL We only have 6 white pines along our driveway. They give us allot....

 

We went out into the countryside top pick up some horse manure. We brought back five bags and put one directly into the larger of two compost bins that we have...along with a sack full of leaves.

At our apartment building there are all sorts of work groups. one has to do with cleaning up leaves that fall into the down ramp leading into the garage.

The organizers decided to buy a leaf sucker that mulches the leaves at the same time....they had a problem: what to do with the leaves that had been sucked-up. They thought about dumping them in the adjacent park, but realized that it might look a bit "suspicious". We placed our names on the list as infallers if someone was ill and could not work their turn. We also said that we would happily take the gathered leaves to make leaf mould for our lottie.

We were happy as was the team. Leaf mould is such handy stuff to have, and there are a couple of different ways to make it. We have tried the plastic bag method in the past and that works fine,; however, we are just chucking them into the compost and mixing the chips in with the rest of the compost.

We looked yesterday and they seem to be breaking down much faster than we had expected. I will say that when making leaf mould, the rate of composting is dependant upon the type of leaf...as well as whether it is chipped (mulched) or not.

 

First off, mulched leaves do decompose more evenly and more quickly, making it easier to work when gardening days roll around again.

Second, Sjoerd, it would be marvelous if you could be cloned. This planet needs more natural minded folks like yourself to keep food clean and edible. I know we have a few here, but are there enough to combat corporations like Monsanto ?

 

Growing Pains---we are on the same page with the leaves, aren't we.
You said such a lovely thing there. Wish you were here--I'd give you a big ole hug !

 

Closest thing to a hug. Thanks.

 

I picked crab apples!

 

Bunkie!?!?!??!?! I am so glad to see you. I have missed you!

 

Oh man, missed you guys too! Big hugs!